I was extremely ecstatic the week before the Dark Falls Teen Surfing Competition. The surfing competition took place on August 31st, the Friday before school started. I had only a week before the competition took place and I needed to practice 24/7. Good thing I had a surfing simulator in my backyard, I thought. Prior to now, I usually practiced surfing on the simulator once a day, but if I didn't practice more than that, I wasn't going to win, so I needed to practice a lot more than once a day. But how was I going to do that?
Well, whenever I needed help getting something done – that was athletic – I asked Sam. So, I asked Sam to come over to my house to help me practice. Sam was good at training people, plus he was good at sports, so he probably had his own training schedule. When Sam arrived at my house, I led him to the backyard so we could start creating a training schedule for my surfing.
After about thirty minutes of heavy thinking, we finally perfected a training schedule. For the next six days, I would get up at 6:00 A.M. with Sam, eat breakfast, and then complete three 30-minute practice sessions with breaks in between, eat lunch, do four more 30-minute sessions with breaks in between, eat dinner, and then perform three last 30-minute sessions with breaks in between. That would equal a total of five hours of practice a day, which was good enough for me to win the competition.
Sam suggested that we start this training schedule tomorrow, and that we should just do some regular practice today so that we could figure out what I needed to improve on in my surfing technique. I was fine with this, so we started practicing right away. I grabbed my surfing board from the garage, and started up the simulator. I set it to MEDIUM WAVES/MEDIUM CURRENT, since the waves were medium height in the area where the competition was going to take place, and the current was somewhat-slow, somewhat-fast there. This was the perfect setting to set it to, so that I would be prepared for the competition.
I stepped into the shallow water in the surfing simulator, and signaled for Sam to turn it on. Sam did as he was told, and within seconds I could feel a force against my legs – the current – and tiny waves were beginning to bob on the water's surface. Soon, the waves were much bigger, around three feet tall, then five feet, and then stopping at six feet tall. The maximum height for waves on this thing was ten feet tall, so that the water didn't fall out of the simulator. I slid on top of my surfing board and started to balance, so that when the next wave came I would be ready.
When a five-foot wave came, I tilted my board backwards, so that I was balancing on the waves, and then tilted forward and slid down back into the shallow water. The next wave came quicker this time, and I had to be faster. But, hey, they didn't call me Surfer Dude for nothing. I continued practicing for another twenty-five minutes, and then Sam instructed for me to stop. Sam walked over to the back of the simulator and turned it off. I grabbed my board and stepped over the edge of the simulator and onto the soft, prickly grass. Sam was carrying his clipboard and fiercely writing down notes – most likely about my surfing.
Sam walked over to me, and, looking up from his clipboard, said, "Your form is great, but you need to work on your speed a little more. That's about it."
I nodded, and then asked, "Should we practice some more, then?" I wasn't sure if Sam would answer me, though, because he was intently looking at his clipboard. It was funny, how professional he liked to act and how much he wanted to be a leader. It was the reason why the gang had chosen him to lead us through the mysteries we solved. Of course, there was no real leader of the group, since it was a group, but he did sort of take on the leader-group role.
Sam nodded – after about a minute – and I stepped back onto the simulator. Sam set it to MEDIUM WAVES/MEDIUM CURRENT, and I practiced again.
* * *
I practiced with Sam for the next six days, up until the competition, using the schedule Sam created for me. I got better and better every day; even Sam thought so. The more I practiced, the better I became. Sam and I woke up every morning at 6:00 A.M. to eat breakfast and then start practicing.
At first, I was barely able to balance on my board that early in the morning, and I became very tired half-way into the first session. But with each coming day, I became less tired, and built up my endurance. Also, my technique and speed became magnificent by the end of the week, and my surfing was really coming along. Sometimes, Gwen and Astrid would even come to watch me surf.
But this was all fun and show. When the competition did arrive, I would have to do a lot better than this. Which was okay, since I've been practicing so much, and I would be able to practice just a little more by the time the competition started.
* * *
The day the competition arrived, I was ready. I woke up early in the morning, ate breakfast, and then completed a regular practice session on my surfing simulator. I had to warm up before the competition. The sun had barely risen over the trees, and it was still dim outside. No one was out yet – except me, of course.
Sam arrived at my house around 7:00 A.M. to help me practice and to get ready for the competition. I had been eating healthy all week; nothing short of fruits, vegetables, meats, and carbs. This morning had been no different. I had eaten some oatmeal, a sausage, and a bowl of fruit on the side. After Sam helped me practice, he drove us to Astrid's house, so that he could pick up Astrid, and Gwen who had been sleeping over, and then we drove to the competition.
My parents would've driven me to the competition, but they were currently on a business trip. Sam's going to film the competition for them on his camera, so they can watch it when they get back. It was now 8:00 A.M. and I was super enthusiastic about the competition that I was literally shaking with the excitement.
"Are you okay, Tanner," Sam asked from the driver's seat.
It took me a few seconds to interpret what he had said, since I was so jumpy, but I quickly replied, "Yep!" Nobody spoke another word to me until we arrived at the Surfing Arena in southern Dark Falls. I guess they thought I was so excited that I wouldn't be able to speak back. They were probably right. I was so jittery right now, and I was probably going to be this way until the competition started. I would have to calm myself down big time when it was time to surf and show everybody else that I was better than them at surfing. But the competition wouldn't start for another hour and a half. I had time to regain my composure, so that I would do great in the competition.
When my friends and I arrived at the Surfing Arena, I immediately jumped out of the car – literally speaking – and ran towards the entrance. There was a huge line to get in, though. My friends caught up to me in line, and before I knew it, we were through. Of course, I was so jumpy that time flew by waiting in line. What had felt like a few minutes for me had actually been twenty minutes. I needed to get my head straight, so I could surf my best.
By the time my friends were seated, it was 9:00 A.M. The competition started in an hour, and I needed to check myself in. I asked for a "sign-in" clipboard – that's what the workers here at the arena called it – and filled it out. Ten sheets of paper were clipped into the clipboard and I had to fill each one out! This would really calm me down, that was for sure. Things I had to fill out on the sheets of paper included name, date of birth, age, address, phone number, e-mail, and lots more; but most importantly, a waiver at the end. I guess they were required to put that in, so if one of the competitors was hurt or died in the competition, no one would be held responsible. Hopefully I wouldn't get hurt...or worse.
After I was done filling out the sheets of paper, I handed my clipboard to an employee and walked to the Competitors' Area, towards the back of the Surfing Area. In the middle of the arena, there was a huge surfing simulator – the place where I would be surfing today, and in front of it there were tens of thousands of seats for on-lookers. That would surely make me nervous during the competition...all those people staring at me. How nerve-racking, I thought. I shook the thought out of my head, and continued walking towards the Competitors' Area – the place I would be staying until the competition started. I arrived at the Competitors' Area with my surf board, and lightly laid my board beside a chair and then sat in the chair. I waited patiently for the competition to begin, and tried to get my head straight.
Just relax, I thought. Just relax.
* * *
"Hello, everyone," a sudden voice boomed. I had been sleeping for the past ten minutes – which was bad, since I needed to warm up – and this voice had woken me up. It was probably the person who was in charge of the whole competition today, or it could be the person sponsoring it. I didn't really care. This booming voice had really woken me up and I needed to warm up now. As the person with the booming voice spoke, I jogged in place, getting ready for the competition to begin.
"Thank you for coming to the Annual Dark Falls Teen Surfing Competition. I am Jessie Rocklin, the person sponsoring this wonderful competition. Those who come to surf in the competition today...we are honored to have you here with us. Let's get the surfers moving and out into the arena!" the person spoke, her voice booming yet again; I could tell that it was a "she" now. The women speaking must have had a microphone or something, because I'm pretty sure I could hear her voice from miles away.
Employees started yelling to the competitors to get ready, which meant change into a tight bathing suit if needed, go to the bathroom if needed, grab your surf board, and then meet the employees on the deck – right in front of the huge surfing simulator. I was sure that it was big enough to fit all of the competitors in, and maybe even the whole crowd. After getting ready, I grabbed my surf board and jogged to the deck. I hadn't warmed up the last ten minutes like I was supposed to, so I was making up for it now.
It took about ten more minutes for all the competitors to reach the deck, which meant ten minutes of jogging in place for me. I took a few breaks throughout the ten minutes, during which I drank water, caught my breath, and then started back up again. I didn't want to unnecessarily tire myself out before the competition even began. No, that would be stupid. I had to be smart about this, which I wasn't very good at in school, but surfing was my one exception. I mean, I wasn't one of those Californian surfers who were incredibly dumb, but I wasn't exactly an "Astrid" either, if you know what I mean.
"Okay, surfers! Ready for the competition?" the woman shouted. The woman who had been executing these announcements had dark skin and dark hair. She was wearing a white shirt with gray embroidering and gray gems circling the spherical sleeves of her shirt. Her jeans were neat, and her high heels were leopard print.
All of the surfers yelled "Yes!" and then she continued, a not-so-obvious, not-so-genuine smile on her face.
"Okay, here is how the competition is going to be played out. Every surfer – fifty-six in counting, I see – will surf on the water for five minutes, and you will be evaluated. If you fall off your board in any part of the competition, you will be disqualified. This is how we will make match-ups for the tournament-style part of the competition. After match-ups are made, we will go ahead and carry out the tournament-style part of the competition. During the tournament, the rules are simple: surf better than your partner, and stay on your board the longest. No contact or playing dirty. Does everyone understand?" the woman spoke to the competitors. Everyone nodded their heads.
"Well, then, let the competition begin. First up, Jackie Welks," the announcer said.
I waited for about an hour for my name to be called, just sitting on a bench on the deck. My hands were clammy from anxiety and excitement of being in the competition. I felt butterflies in my stomach, and I almost felt awful, like I was going to throw up. But, when the announcer shouted my name, all my anxiety was replaced with excitement for some reason.
I grabbed my board, and rushed to the surfing simulator. I could hear my name being shouted in the audience, possibly something my friends put together to make it seem like I had fans who adored me. How cheesy, I thought. I almost laughed at that thought, but I pushed it away and jumped into the freezing cold water with my board. I jumped onto my board and doggy-paddled until I found a good wave. I stood up, slowly and carefully, and balanced on my board, ready to ride the wave, but I guess fate had it out for me that day.
The wave came too fast, and it bulldozed right into me. I fell off my board and was flung across the water, and eventually resurfaced, knowing that something had gone wrong. I stepped onto the deck, and shouted at the announcer.
"What happened out there? That wave was too big, and you know it," I shouted, the announcer looking frazzled as she tried to reply, but words didn't seem to come out.
"I thing th-there was a malfunction with the machine," the woman stuttered, her eyes showing complete cluelessness.
I sighed. "Can some professional tell me what exactly happened?" I asked in a loud voice, so loud that people in the crowd heard and were staring to boo.
A few seconds later, a professional came out from the technical room, and told me that the machine had been hacked, so that it would malfunction when it was my turn to surf. I had been sabotaged. The woman also said that it was okay for me to surf again, and that I could still possibly win the competition.
I was happy about the fact that I could still compete, but I knew that the person who had given Astrid that scrapbook and the person who had e-mailed Gwen had also done this to me. Howard Finchman was responsible. What did Howard have against me, though?
"Uhh, ma'am? I think I know who did this. It was Howard Finchman. He's been anonymously sending threatening things to my friends," I said, not sure if coming out about the anonymous e-mailer/sender was the right thing to do. I knew this for sure, though, when the woman's expression became grave.
"Hun, how could you say that? Howard Finchman went missing last weekend, and then his body was found a few days ago. Howard Finchman couldn't have done this," the professional said in a grave manor.
My heart sank into my chest. How was this possible? This most likely meant that Howard couldn't have tried blackmailing us. He didn't sabotage me today. It also meant that someone else had tried blackmailing Astrid and Gwen and someone else had sabotaged me. Who, though? That was the million-dollar question.
"Oh, I didn't know. I haven't been paying attention to the news or anything all week. I've been too busy practicing for the competition. My friends were busy helping me practice. None of us knew," I replied. The professional nodded, and I stepped back into the water. I was going to win this.
* * *
After my pre-evaluation in the water for five minutes, I sat on the deck, totally silent, until everyone else had gone. Then, for match-ups, I got paired with a pretty good competitor, which meant I was a good surfer too. I ended up beating him, and everyone else I got paired up with. I had won the competition. I still didn't know who was trying to blackmail the Team of Mystery (our mystery-solving group), but we needed to figure it out...as soon as possible.
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